COTTAGE GROVE, Minn. (AP) — A struggling Minnesota church is asking its older parishioners to leave in hopes of making it more attractive to young families.
Grove United Methodist Church in the St. Paul suburb of Cottage Grove is closing in June, with plans to relaunch in November. The present members, most of them over 60 years old, will be invited to worship elsewhere, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported. The church is asking that they stay away for two years, then consult the pastor about reapplying.
After Reading these news I was wondering if there is a similar motive in the big congregational changes that are affecting more than anyone else the elderly within the WT.
For the last few years the faithful brothers that were taking the lead have been replaced by 30-40 new blood and little by little they have been put to pasture. What is happening now with the fusions is just another step in that direction.